State baseball preview: Loaded field means tough path for Sayre, other hopefuls
As state tournament draws go, 11th Region baseball champion Sayre could have done with a little more luck for its first go-round in the Clark’s Pump-N-Shop Baseball State Tournament presented by UK HealthCare this week.
The No. 5 Spartans open with No. 8 Taylor County of the 5th Region in what will be the first-ever meeting between the programs at 5 p.m. Thursday at Kentucky Proud Park.
Survive that, and it’s likely a date with No. 1 Trinity in Saturday’s 10 a.m. quarterfinal barring a stunning upset by unranked Meade County.
This year’s state tournament field includes 10 teams ranked in the the final PrepBaseballReport.com Top 25 of the regular season, including six teams in the top 10. There are no easy outs anywhere, but the Spartans’ path is tougher than most.
“We look at it one way. You’ve got to beat them sometime, you might as well try to get it done early,” Sayre coach Kevin Clary said. “(Taylor County has) one of the top pitchers in the state, Cole McLean. I think he’s given up one run in like 55 innings all year. … We’ve got our hands full.”
Defending state champion Pleasure Ridge Park returns with a No. 6 ranking and the chance to improve on its seven state tournament titles.
Incredibly, Trinity, a team bustling with talent year in and year out, has just one state championship to its credit (2021). The Shamrocks have won back-to-back 7th Region titles in a division that had No. 2 St. Xavier and No. 3 Ballard this year.
No. 16 Harrison County has four state championships (1993, 1997, 1998, 2010) under Mac Whitaker, Kentucky high school baseball’s all-time coaching wins leader. No. 14 Boyd County rounds out the former title-holders. The Lions got theirs in 2001.
Also of note, four schools have region champions in both baseball and softball this season, so expect to see caravans from Boyle County, Harrison County, South Warren and Taylor County all over Lexington this week.
Here’s a look at some of the best players and teams participating this week.
The ranked contenders
▪ No. 1 Trinity (34-3) has eight declared Division I college commits. Juniors Zach Floyd and Nolan Hosking have picked Louisville, and Grayson Willoughby, another junior, is headed to Kentucky. The Shamrocks have beaten two of this year’s tournament teams, Sayre and McCracken County.
▪ No. 4 McCracken County (29-8) is making its 11th straight state tournament appearance. No 1st Region team has made it past the Mustangs since the western Kentucky school opened in the fall of 2013 and consolidated the former Lone Oak, Reidland and Heath high schools.
▪ No. 5 Sayre (30-6-1) is having a moment this school year in athletics. The Spartans won the Class A state football championship and were state runner-up in the first sanctioned girls lacrosse state title game.
▪ No. 6 Pleasure Ridge Park (26-6) has seven state titles, second only to St. Xavier’s nine, and the Panthers are the defending champs.
▪ No. 7 South Warren (30-8) makes its second appearance in three years.
▪ No. 8 Taylor County (28-6) features Tennessee commit Cole McLean and last won the 5th Region in 2019.
▪ No. 13 Lyon County (21-7) was this year’s All “A” Classic small-school state champion. The Lyons last made the full state field in 2021.
▪ No. 14 Boyd County (29-5) won the Kentucky 2A Championships midseason tournament this year. The Lions last made state 2022.
▪ No. 16 Harrison County (32-5) continues to improve on Whitaker’s incredible all-time record of 1,276-392 and makes its second appearance in three seasons.
▪ No. 23 Boyle County (28-8) won 22 of its last 23 games and last made state in 2018.
The spoilers
▪ Corbin (20-17) stunned No. 10 Whitley County for both the 50th District and 13th Region championships and is making its second straight appearance and third in four years.
▪ Highlands (27-7-1) last made state in 2018 when it lost 10-6 to St. X in the finals.
▪ Johnson Central (29-7) has won 15 straight and last made state in 2022.
▪ Meade County (22-10) was last here in 2012. This year’s Green Wave features Kentucky commit Lucas Hail.
▪ Spencer County (27-8) and Wolfe County (23-11) are both making their first state tournament appearances. The Bears hadn’t made it out of their district tournament since 2013.
SEC-bound players
Known college commitments among tournament players include:
▪ Kentucky: Grayson Willoughby, Trinity; Lucas Hail, Meade County.
▪ Tennessee: Cole McLean, Taylor County
▪ Mississippi State: John Bingham, Lyon County
In-State Division I commitments
▪ Bellarmine: Jaxson Howard, Sayre; Brayden Bruner, Pleasure Ridge Park.
▪ Eastern Kentucky: Ravon Lee, Pleasure Ridge Park.
▪ Louisville: Nolan Hosking and Zach Floyd, Trinity; Will Fox, McCracken County; Kade Elam, Corbin.
▪ Morehead State: Luke Hayes, Taylor County.
▪ Western Kentucky: Ethan Reynolds, South Warren; Peyton Williams, Lyon County.
Other Division I commitments
▪ Cincinnati: Cole Adams, Boyd County. Columbia: Charlie Slabaugh, Sayre, Central Michigan: EJ Milliner, Trinity. Indiana State: Colin Sander, Trinity. Marshall: Carter Walters, Spencer County. Northwestern: Colton Cravens, Trinity. Notre Dame: Caleb Ricks, Trinity. Radford: Eli Baker, Lyon County.
By the numbers
Top offensive threats: Korben Lucas, Lyon County (.589 AVG, 40 RBI, 16 2B, 2 HR); Brooks Hendrix, Highlands (.578 AVG, 42 runs, 17 2B); Griffin Rardin, South Warren (.490 AVG, 44 RBI, 19 2B, 5 3B, 4 HR).
Home run power: Gary Gibson, Sayre (14); Jashon Lewis, Harrison County (10); Chase Preece, Johnson Central (9).
Best on the mound: Jarrett Stewart, Spencer County (11-0, 0.53 ERA, 65.2 IP); Cole McLean, Taylor County (9-0, 0.12 ERA, 57 IP); Hudson Meredith, Trinity (9-0, 0.79 ERA, 35.2 IP); Grant Slater, Boyd County (7-1, 0.00 ERA, 40 IP).
Strikeout kings: McLean, Taylor County (119); Stewart, Spencer County (105); Caeden Patterson, Boyle County (92).
Team batting average leaders: Trinity (.363); Harrison County (.342); Highlands (.342).
Team runs leaders: Harrison County (320); Trinity (300); South Warren (286).
Team homers: Trinity (24); Spencer County (20); Lyon County (19).
Team ERA: Trinity (1.17); McCracken County (1.44); Boyle County (1.75).
State High School Baseball Tournament
What: Clark’s Pump-N-Shop Baseball State Tournament presented by UK HealthCare
Where: Kentucky Proud Park
Tickets: GoFan.co/app/school/KHSAA
Streaming: KHSAA.tv
Thursday’s first-round games
10 a.m.: Trinity (34-3) vs. Meade County (22-10)
1:30 p.m.: Boyle County (28-8) vs. Boyd County (29-5)
5 p.m.: Taylor County (28-6) vs. Sayre (30-6-1)
8:30 p.m.: Harrison County (32-5) vs. Wolfe County (23-11)
Friday’s first-round games
10 a.m.: McCracken County (29-8) vs. Lyon County (21-7)
1:30 p.m.: South Warren (30-8) vs. Highlands (27-7-1)
5 p.m.: Pleasure Ridge Park (26-6) vs. Corbin (20-17)
8:30 p.m.: Johnson Central (29-7) vs. Spencer County (27-8)
Saturday’s quarterfinals
10 a.m.: Trinity-Meade County winner vs. Taylor County-Sayre winner
1:30 p.m.: Boyle County-Boyd County winner
vs. Harrison County-Wolfe County winner
5 p.m.: McCracken County-Lyon County winner vs. South Warren-Highlands
8:30 p.m.: Johnson Central-Spencer County winner vs. Pleasure Ridge Park-Corbin winner
June 13’s semifinals
Times TBD: Final Four
June 14’s finals
Time TBD: Championship game
This story was originally published June 3, 2025 at 10:57 AM.
